New Delhi: Barely a day after President, Ram Nath Kovind, gave assent to The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act, 2019, making instant divorce through triple talaq punishable offence; it has been challenged in Supreme Court.
A Muslim group from Kerala, Samastha Kerala Jamiathul Ulema, has filed a petition at Supreme Court to declare the law unconstitutional. The group is said to be the largest Muslim organization in Kerala considering the number of its member.
The plea of the Samastha Kerala Jamiathul Ulema says that the law is class specific to Muslims and the intent is to punish Muslim husbands rather than abolishing triple talaq.
The plea said, “The Act has introduced penal legislation, specific to a class of persons based on religious identity. It is causative of grave public mischief, which, if unchecked, may lead to polarization and disharmony in society.”
The plea also says that the Act violates Article 14, 15, and 21 of the Constitution of India and must be struck down.
The Modi government had passed the Triple Talaq Act to help Muslim women suffering from the evil of triple talaq, which empowers men to divorce their wives by uttering talaq three times. This was misused by Muslim men to control their wives and brought untold hardships to the women of the community.
BJP’s win in many constituencies dominated by Muslims is attributed to women from the community voting for the saffron party for its stand against triple talaq.
However, when the bill was introduced in both the Houses of Parliament, it was opposed vehemently by MPs of many political parties claiming to be progressive.
